Event Description:Molecular Dynamics simulations (MD), born in 1957, have now a long history of successes, essentially based on the realization of the Boltzmann program to explain the properties of macroscopic matter (essentially in equilibrium) on the basis of (classical) atomistic statistical mechanics. In the years MD has evolved from the simulation of simple (point particles), small systems, sufficient to derive the thermodynamic properties of simple phases, to that of large, almost macroscopic, systems and complex aggregates of (macro-)molecules.

Other Details:Professor Giovanni Ciccotti of the University of Rome Ciccotti is the leading researcher in the field of developing and applying advanced molecular dynamics methods - he developed many of the methods that are now used worldwide to study systems of large molecules (biological, polymer, etc) and rare events (chemical reactions, nucleation, etc).